NATIONAL MISSILE DEFENCE - THE MILITARY ARM OF GLOBALISATION

Article for Update, newsletter of the European Federation of Green Parties May 2001

The decision by President George Bush to press ahead with the so-called "National Missile Defence" (NMD) programme was strongly criticized at an international conference held in Leeds earlier this month. UK Green MEP Caroline Lucas addressed the "No Star Wars" event, attended by more than 200 anti-nuclear activists from over 17 countries, alongside speakers from around the world, including the USA, Russia, Germany and Japan.

The meeting, co-organised by the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space and the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament was held in Yorkshire, where two of the military bases (Menwith Hill and Fylingdales) included in the US plan are cited.

The conference heard that National Missile Defense (NMD) is only part of a wider US plan to dominate space militarily in the future. As well as breaking the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty and leading to the proliferation of nuclear weapons, the missile defence plan will involve other countries around the world in a plan the the US intends to use to "dominate space."

Caroline Lucas told the conference: "NMD is not driven by defence requirements but by corporate greed. The US Space Command, with its logo "Master of Space" is working hard to develop the space-based laser programe, which is the follow-on technology to missile defence. It has explicitly said that it intends to use this programme to protect US corporate "interests and investments" around the world, as the gap widens between the "have’s" and the "have-nots". In essence, the Space Command will become the military instrument by which corporations maintain their global control."

Two strong recommendations came out of the conference. First was to challenge, at every opportunity, the idea that NMD is a defensive system. To the contrary, it is extremely offensive, specifically designed to consolidate the US position as global superpower. As the Commander in Chief of US Space Command has himself boasted: "Some people don’t want to hear this, and it sure isn’t in vogue, but - absolutely - we’re going to fight in space. We’re going to fight from space and we’re going to fight into space."

Second, the conference agreed that stronger links need to be made between peace groups and the wider anti-globalisation movement. An early opportunity will be the international day of action against NMD which will take place on 13 October. Further, a delegation from International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War will be coming to the European Parliament on 25 June 2001 to discuss US plans for National Missile Defence.